Angkor in 3 Days with Tonle Sap and Beng Mealea

Angkor in 3 days
Discover the site of Angkor and the surroundings

Program in pref:
Day 1: Visit Kampong Kleang and visit remote temple Beng Mealea
Day 2: Sunrise in Angkor and discover the temples of the small circuit
Day 3: Visit Banteay Srei temple, Banteay Samré and the temples of the grand circuit

Itinerary

Day 1: Day 1: Visit Tonle Sap (Floating Village) and Beng Mealea

Stop At: Kampong Phluk Floating Village, Siem Reap Cambodia
Breakfast. In the morning, a French speaking guide and driver will pick you up at the hotel at 8am. You will visit the largest freshwater reserve in Southeast Asia, the picturesque lakeside villages of Tonle Sap, is located 30 km south of Siem Reap. You will take a private boat to visit the Cambodian life on the water, the fishermen and the mangrove landscapes. The inhabitants move by boat on the lake during the rainy season, the children go to school by boat, the women sell the cake and the vegetables on their small boats. Walk through the footbridges of the fishing village perched on huge piles. Houses on huge piles of 6 to 7 meters high. Houses are surrounded by the flooded forest that can be visited by boat in the rainy season and on foot during the dry season.

Beng Mealea
The Tonle Sap, designated a biosphere reserve by Unesco in 1997 for its ecological, economic, social and cultural value, is the largest freshwater reserve in Southeast Asia. It is also the nourishing lake of more than half of the Cambodian population.

People live around the lake and most of them make their living from fishing and farming, from floating houses, and all activities are fishing, there are a lot of huge fish ponds in floating cages. More than 300 000 tonnes of fish are fished each year.

Afternoon, lunch in a Cambodian restaurant

After the meal and a moment of rest, you continue the visit to discover Beng Mealea temple dated for 12 centuries abandoned in the middle of the forest and encircled by the roots of the trees. This temple is 60 km from Siem Reap, was built by the Suryavarman II, it is never restored.
Return to Siem Reap late afternoon
Duration: 6 hours

No meals included on this day.
No accommodation included on this day.

Day 2: Day 2: See sunrise and visit the temples of the small circuit

Stop At: Angkor Wat, Sangkat Nokor Thum, Siem Reap Cambodia
You will be picked up at your Siem Reap hotel between 4:45 or 5am. You admire the sunrise in front of the temple of Angkor Wat.

After seeing the sunrise, you visit the largest and most impressive temple of all the temples of Angkor. Angkor Wat is the largest sacred building in the world. The construction of this architectural masterpiece of the 12th century took 30 years and symbolizes the apogee of the Khmer civilization. The 5 towers of Angkor Wat are featured on the flag of Cambodia today.

You continue the visit through the south gate of Angkor Thom, flanked on either side by a row of 54 stone statues (gods on the right and demons on the left) and the fortified city of Angkor Thom.
Then visit Bayon temple (twelfth century), you can admire its beautifully carved central towers that cover 200 huge faces. You will then explore the Royal Palace, the Elephant Terrace, the Baphoun (11th century temple with a large reclining Buddha), Phimeanakas and the King's Leper Terrace.

After the meal and a moment of rest, you continue to see Ta Prohm, encircled by the jungle. Ta Prohm is one of the most atmospheric temples of Angkor. Formerly inhabited by 2,740 monks, Ta Prohm today looks much like it was in the 1850s when the French explorer Henri Mouhot rediscovered the site falling into ruins. (The temple turn Tomb raider movie, Angelina Jolies)
After exploring the labyrinthine interior of Ta Prohm, you will return to your hotel.
Duration: 7 hours

No meals included on this day.
No accommodation included on this day.

Day 3: Day 3: Visit Banteay Srei and Banteay Samrè the temples of the grand circuit

Stop At: Banteay Srei, Siem Reap Cambodia
In the morning, after breakfast, we will pick you up at 8am, you will visit the temple 1 hour drive from the Temples of Angkor, Banteay Srei date of 10th century, also called "the citadel of women", c is a small marvel of pink sandstone, very well preserved, of a rare delicacy, richly and finely decorated with graceful motifs and scenes of Hindu mythology, On the return, stop in a village for a demonstration of the harvest of the juice of palm for the making of palm sugar Then you will visit a temple since 12th century dedicated to Vishnu and Civa, called Banteay Samrè.

In the afternoon, continue your visit to the site of Angkor, you will visit the temples of the great circuit, Preah Khan, this temple was built with the same period of the temple of Ta Prohm - continuation to a shrine placed in the middle of a artificial basin named Neak Pean, Ta Som reigning temple of King Jayavarman VII, the Eastern Mebon and Pre Rup Temple were built in the 10th century.
Back to the city of Siem Reap
Duration: 7 hours

No meals included on this day.
No accommodation included on this day.